Assembling a Layer Cake without Using a Cake Stand

Raspberry Buttercream Layer Cake

Appears in

Baking

By James Peterson

Published 2009

About

If you want the cake to have a perfectly delicate texture, trim off the crust on the top, bottom, and sides of the cake.
Use a serrated knife at least as long as the cake is wide to slice the cake crosswise into 3 equal layers.
Cut a round of cardboard about ½ inch more in diameter than the cake, so there is a ¼-inch-wide circle surrounding the cake. Put a dollop of buttercream on the cardboard to hold the cake in place.
Put one of the cake layers in the center of the cardboard and brush with the flavored syrup.
Spread buttercream on the first and second layers. Check the thickness of the buttercream by making indentations with a metal spatula. The buttercream should be about ¼ inch thick.
Put the final layer (the reserved bottom) on the cake, smooth side up, brush with syrup, and spread with buttercream.
Spread the buttercream over the top of the cake, working from the center outward, so that extra buttercream hangs over the edges. You’ll use this to coat the sides.
Smooth the sides with a bench scraper or spatula and continue to spread buttercream on the sides. Scrape excess buttercream off the spatula into a little bowl to avoid getting crumbs in the main batch.
Continue alternating between smoothing off the sides and top of the cake until it is even and completely covered. If you wish, freeze the cake for 15 minutes and apply another thin layer of buttercream.
Heat a long metal spatula by dipping it in hot water or waving over a hot flame. Wipe the spatula dry if it’s wet and smooth the cake with the warm spatula.
Hold the cake up and use your hand to stick a thin rim of toasted almonds all around the sides.
Decorate with buttercream rosettes. Place a raspberry in the center of each rosette.

Part of

Cakes